Free backpacks, other school supplies to be passed out at ESM Youth Day Picnic

Jim Commentucci/The Post-StandardDale Johnson and his 10-year-old son Matthew Johnson of East Syracuse pose for a photo with donated school supplies Tuesday at Uncle Bob's Storage in East Syracuse.

For information:
Call Dale Johnson at 254-8569 to contribute or to volunteer for the ESM Youth Day Picnic. Visit Tilliestouch.org to see a list of sponsors.

Dale Johnson remembers feeling different when he started elementary school without all the new notebooks and pencils and glue sticks his classmates were proudly toting on opening day.

Now, Johnson is doing what he can to make sure kids in the East Syracuse Minoa Central School District all start on a level playing field when school opens. Last year, through Tillie’s Touch, named for his daughter Abigale’s middle name, he and a squad of dedicated volunteers made sure that more than 400 youngsters started school with backpacks and supplies. He expects even more kids this year.

“When I was going to school,” Johnson said, “my mom was by herself and I didn’t have all the school supplies I needed. I remember the feeling of going to school and feeling out of place,” he recalled. “For some kids, it’s the start of a domino effect. They get resentful, skip school or drop out and end up on the streets.

“This is a way we can get kids excited about going to school,” he said.

The donation period officially ended Aug. 14, but Johnson said, “Collections are down this year,” so anyone who would like to help out with money or supplies can call him at 254-8569.

“This year, our volunteers distributed twice as many fliers and I don’t think we’re up to what we got last year. I was quite surprised. I think the economy has taken hold of some people,” he said.

At the same time, the need is way up, he said. Since a recent television report about Tillie’s Touch, he said, “My phone’s been ringing off the hook with people looking for help with school supplies. Not just from ESM, but from all over.”

To take up the slack, he said, “We’ll try to hit the business owners up again and we’ll keep a close eye on sales that are going on (where Tillie’s Touch buys school supplies).”

The Five Below store was a big help, providing backpacks at a discount and donating 10 percent of sales recently for every purchase made with a Tillie’s Touch flier, he said.

“We target each child,” Johnson said. “We go to the ESM website and find out what they need. For second-graders, we make sure there is second-grade stuff in there. And we make sure no glue sticks get in the sixth-grade backpacks,” he said with a laugh.

Volunteers will distribute the backpacks at the ESM Youth Day Picnic from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at Hanlon Pool on McCool Avenue.

“I have a good group of volunteers,” Johnson said, including his wife, Jacquelyn; his daughter, Abigale, 14, who will be entering ESM High School, and his son Dylan, 10, who attends Fremont Elementary School.

“At the picnic, we have hamburgers and hot dogs and watermelon and the kids are going to be offered free back-to-school haircuts,” he said.

Annie Cox, of The Shear Concept salon in East Syracuse, said, “They asked us to volunteer last year and we had a blast. There’s going to be two of us this year from my shop, me and Drew DeVaul.”